What England can expect from captain Root

After four turbulent years under Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, questions arise about whether England might return to a more conservative style under Joe Root. Since 2006, only the sides captained by Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen have posted lower run‑rates and employed fewer attacking shots than any other England Test skipper. In Root’s 65 Tests in charge, England’s run‑rate has been 3.16, with the team playing an attacking shot just 23 % of the time. Under Stokes, the run‑rate rose to 4.40 and attacking shots accounted for 42 % of the total. Does that imply Root’s sides are more likely to compile big scores because their risk is lower? The evidence points the other way. The average runs scored for the loss of a wicket stand at 29 under Root, compared with 34 when Stokes was in charge. When Andrew Strauss led